TV press tour: HBO won’t air Gandolfini pilot

HBO executives said on Thursday that they will not air the pilot episode of “Criminal Justice,” which featured scenes with the late James Gandolfini.

“I can’t imagine us airing the pilot with James in it,” said HBO programming chief Michael Lombardo, who added that the actor’s sudden passing “took the wind out of our sails.”

In the pilot, Gandolfini played a downtrodden jailhouse attorney who visits police stations for clients.

Lombardo told reporters at the TV critics summer press tour that HBO is contemplating the future of the limited series and is in the process of recasting the role.

Other HBO highlights:

— There is no end game for “Game of Thrones.” Not yet, at least.

“It can go on as long as there are stories to tell,” Lombardo said of the fantasy epic, which continues to grow in popularity.

The same apparently goes for “True Blood,” which was recently renewed for a seventh season and has experienced a new creative energy, according to Lombardo.

— Aaron Sorkin’s “The Newsroom” may be a target of dersion for critics, but the drama will most likely be renewed for a third season. Lombardo said the odds for an extension are “excellent” and that an official announcement should come soon.

— Selina Meyer, Julia Louis Dreyfuss’ character in “Veep,” will run for president in Season 3. “We’ll see her on a bus a lot,” said Lombardo. “She’ll be out on the campaign trail.”

— On the cancellation of “Enlightened,” which recently earned Laura Dern an Emmy nomination, Lombardo said, “We felt creatively that the story had come to a natural resting place. It felt like we should end where we did.”

— Larry David (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) returns to HBO in the film, “Clear History” (9 p.m. Aug. 4). David, who wrote the script, plays an unlucky marketing executive who leaves his start-up company, only to see it go on to make billions.

— Sarah Silverman will star in her first HBO comedy special, “Sarah Silverman: We Are Miracles,” which is scheduled for Nov. 23.

— The shortened five-episode final season of “Treme” is slated for Dec. 1.